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Crop Insurance Deadline Nears

Farmers have until March 15 to make their crop insurance decisions.

Mar 12, 2012

The deadline for farmers to purchase crop insurance is Thursday, March 15. There are changes in the program this year and the National Corn Growers Association urges farmers to explore how these changes can make coverage more affordable. Lower insurance premiums are being offered for most coverage levels this year. Also, with adjustments to historical-yield trend calculations, many growers can take advantage of lower rates and increases in coverage.

"At NCGA, we constantly strive to improve the safety net for farmers and hope that in 2012 many will take advantage of the improved options that we have achieved," NCGA President Garry Niemeyer said. "By reexamining crop insurance options, many growers may find that increased coverage is more affordable and will better guard against losses in 2012."

Lower premiums are the result of adjustments that the Risk Management Agency made based on updated crop insurance actuarial data and partial implementation of proposed changes to the program's rating methodology. Niemeyer notes too that farmers in many areas are benefitting from an additional change in the addition of the Trend-Adjusted Actual Production History Yield Endorsement option.

University of Illinois Farm Management Specialist Gary Schnitkey has run numbers and has crop insurance suggestions for corn and soybean farmers in the Midwest.
"Most people took RP at a 75%, 80% and 85% coverage level and used enterprise units," Schnitkey said. "That'll be a good choice for the coming year and add Trend Adjustment to it. Take a look at RP because of the premium changes."

On that note, Schnitkey says producers choosing RP, RP with Exclusion or YP should - in almost all cases, make the Trend Adjusted Yield election for the APH, it doesn't come automatically.
"The APH yield is used in calculating guarantees, the Trend Adjusted Yield endorsement adds trend to that APH yield," Schnitkey said. "So it will increase the APH yield causing you to have a higher guarantee and a byproduct of that is that you can lower the coverage level if you want to and have the same guarantee but at a lower price."